Improvement in whiffletree-hooks



W. HESTON. Whiffletree Hook.

No. 202,437. Patented April 16,1878.

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WILLIAM HESTON, OF AKRON, OHIO.

IMPROVEMENT IN WHIFFLETREE-HOOKS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 202,437, dated April 16, 1878; application filed May 19, 1877.

' with its short arm.

Figure 1 is a horizontal section. Fig. 2 is a vertical section.

The box b is firmly attached to the thills of a carriage, so that lever a will be in a proper position for the trace to be hitched to the outer end of its long arm. The lever turns on a bolt, 0, which passes through the lever, box b and its cover 0, and the thills. The long arm of the lever projects through a horizontal slot, 0, in the side of box b, in which lever a oscillates when the draft is applied.

The interior of box b is circular. Each side of lever a within box b is the arc of a circle whose center is the pivot of the lever, the are on one side being in contact with the interior circumference of box b, and a space or recess being left between the other are and the interior circumference of box b, so that the ends of the recess are formed by the two arms of lever a. The end of this recess next to the long arm of lever a is filled by the abutment x, which is firmly attached to box b. The remainder of the recess is filled by the rubber spring s, except a narrow space between spring 8 and the smaller arc of lever a, to allow compression of the spring.

The lever a and abutment a0 prevent mud and other extraneous substances-from entering the recess occupied by spring 8. Box b is bolted to the thills through the flange of the box, as well as by the lever bolt or pivot 0.

When draft is applied to the long arm of lever a its short arm a/ compresses spring 8 against abutment x, and lever a moves toward the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1. When the tension is relaxed, the long arm of lever a is moved back by theforce of spring s.

Two of the boxes and levers are used, one for each trace, and when the vehicle to which they are attached is in use the levers oscillate similarly to the ends of an ordinary Whiffletree.

I claim as my invent-ion- The lever a, fitted at its outer end to hold harness-trace, and having the short arm a, in combination with the rubber spring 8, pivot c, and box b, having the abutment 00 at one end of slot 0, the lever a being fitted to turn in contact with abutment w and the interior of box b, substantially as described.

WILLIAM HESTON.

Witnesses GEo. F. ROBINSON, BRADFORD HOWLAND. 

